Should you “dispute” your accounts? 0
Everyone has the right to dispute an account on their credit report if they think that the account has been reported incorrectly or has an error on it. Part of the process is that when you dispute an account, the bureaus can’t use that derogatory information to lower your credit score until the issue is resolved. Well we humans have a natural tendency to take advantage of loopholes that are intended to help, so people started abusing the system by disputing any and all derogatory accounts regardless of the true or false nature of the reporting. The problem is that the “dispute” tag does not always get removed once the dispute has been settled. It is stuck to many accounts even ones that have been paid off and closed for years. Common sense says that an account that is paid and closed is not being disputed anymore, doesn’t it?
Now I don’t know about other industries, but the mortgage business decided that the abuse was too much of a risk so most Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, conventional lenders have implemented a flat policy that they will not lend to a borrower that has ANY disputed accounts on their credit report. If you have a “dispute” tag on any of your accounts and you want to get a conventional loan, you have to get a letter from the original creditor that states that they will report to the credit bureaus that the account is no longer disputed. The letter itself is not good enough. So you can go about this one of two ways, you can wait the 30 to 60 days it takes for the creditor to report to the bureaus or you pay for a service that can get it reported in 3 to 4 days. Some companies call this Rescore Express and others call it Rapid Rescore. You send in the letter to a credit reporting company and they go to the bureuas and get the “dispute” tag taken off.
So you want to use a conventional loan (FHA loans do not have this “dispute” problem) and you find out you have a dispute on an account, so you call the creditor to get the letter. If the account is old and closed, the creditor does not have a huge motivation to send you that letter but let’s assume you get it.. You send it in for the quick rescore service and they send it in to the bureaus. Now the problem comes up that certain bureaus have to verify the letter with a phone call but your creditor has a policy that they do not give out that information over the phone. Now you have a problem. The bureau has to have a verification but your creditor won’t play well with others. I am currently working with a borrower that is going through this exact problem. They disputed an account 8 years ago and eventually paid it off but the dispute was never removed. They are a good credit risk. They have a good income and low debt but they are stuck in this bureaucratic catch22.
So if you want a conventional loan and you have any disputes on your credit report please start the process of getting those removed or you will have to go with an FHA loan.
Let me know if you have any questions or if I can help.
What is a low ball offer? 0
Where you come from makes the difference as to what a low ball offer is. I am currently working with a buyer that is relocating from Florida. He is very business savvy and we had a couple of good conversations about the difference between the Real Estate markets here versus Florida. He has been trying to be very aggressive with his offers and have been getting a rather cold shoulder from the sellers. That could just be the seller that he was dealing with and his offers were not what I would call “low ball” but they were aggressive and he was asking for closing cost concessions. He talked to his Realtor and me about it and he was just surprised that he could not offer what he thought was a fair price and also ask for closing costs. You might be able do that in parts of Florida but not here. I’m really not trying to pick on Florida but there have been some value issues in the past but I have heard that certain parts of Florida are recovering a little.
So what is a “low ball” offer? 10% below asking price, 20% below?. I suppose it has something to do with the property and the location but I think most sellers in our area would consider an offer that is 10% lower then the listed price (especially if the buyer asks for closing costs on top of that) would be a low ball offer. The point I am trying to make is that the Denver Market is doing much better then some. For all the talk of how slow it is, I would hate to be working in parts of Florida or some other spots in the nation where 10% or 20% low offers are accepted. If you are looking to sell your home in the Denver / Front range area, it is a great time to do that. Prices are not being set by the buyers as much as in the recent past. If you are looking to buy a home now is a great time as well simply because rates are still in the low to mid 4% range. Down Payment help is still out there in the form of CHFA loans.
Let me know if I can answer any questions.
And here is todays posting of Then and Now:
This is the Asbury Methodist Episcopal Church at 32nd & Vallejo in 1882 in a photo taken by William Henry Jackson (courtesy of the Denver Public Library) There was not much around the Highland neighborhood at that time. In 2011, The church has not changed much and Highland is one of the most sought after neighborhood’s in the metro area. You can click on the Thumbnail photos here for a larger view.
Homeowner help 0
I just received this information and wanted to pass it on.
Here is some information on the Emergency Homeowner Loan Program (EHLP) that you may want to forward to your Realtor clients. The program is designed to assist homeowners who are currently 90 days or more delinquent on their first mortgage. The program will offer a declining balance, deferred payment “bridge loan” (non-recourse, subordinate loan with zero interest) for up to $50,000 to assist eligible homeowners who have become unemployed or underemployed due to the economic downturn or a medical condition.
Information about the program including eligibility requirements and the application can be found at www.findehlp.org
The funds will be distributed through a state-wide lottery which will be held in early August. If a homeowner is interested in getting into the lottery they must complete the application and send to Douglas County Housing by 5:00 p.m. on July 22, 2011.
Completed applications may be sent to Douglas County Housing Partnership as follows:
- Email to: ahugh@douglas.co.us
- US Postal: Douglas County Housing Partnership, c/o Ann Hugh, 9350 Heritage Hills Circle, Lone Tree, CO 80124
- Fax: 303-814-2966
So if you know of anyone that might benefit from this program, send them this information.